Daniel
Daniel working on the possum plucker project
Daniel started his product development with plans for 'skurfing fins' – a fin which would enable a surfer being towed behind a boat to slide around more. He produced his initial brief, decided on the initial key factors and did some research.
However, he realised that he wouldn't be able to complete the fins in the time allowed and decided to start again with a new idea. Although this put him behind time-wise, he was able to modify some of the preliminary work he had done and use it.
Daniel makes money by selling possum fur and during the previous summer had worked with another trapper on designing a machine to pluck the fur. He decided to work on this idea, using the same person as his design client.
He researched the possum pluckers currently available and found that they were all petrol driven. The disadvantage of this was that they were noisy and could potentially scare off other possums in the vicinity. They would also require petrol to be available for refuelling.
Daniel explaining his project
Daniel and his client had made a machine which ran with an electric motor, using mains electricity. They found that at least 10% of the plucked fur was lost, as it fell on the ground instead of into the collection box.
His client asked for an electric powered version that would run off the truck battery and could be placed on the back of the truck when in use. However, during consultation Daniel and his client discussed the problems with this – firstly that it would require a generator to keep the batteries charged, and secondly that the possums were cold by the time they got back to the truck, which made them harder to pluck and that meant they didn't harvest as much fur.
A machine can pluck a possum much faster but takes off all the fur; this includes the shorter fur which the buyers don't want so means the fur is of less value and payment is reduced accordingly.
After considering all these points Daniel decided to focus on producing a device that would assist hand plucking, even though using it would take longer.
He initially planned to cut and weld aluminium rods into a frame but, after discussion with his teacher, decided to bend the rods into shape. As well as saving time he felt this looked better, because there weren't welds everywhere, and the rounded ends wouldn't catch on anything.
He came up with various designs for the end grips which would hold the carcass in place by its tail and two paws. His client tried out a prototype in the bush and reported that the grips were hard to use, so Daniel changed his final design to incorporate special slots at either end to make this easier.
Daniel's outcome being tested
The frame needed to be enclosed so the fur wouldn't fall out. Daniel initially thought about using canvas, for its durability, on the base, and mesh, for its lightness and transparency, for the rest. This was trialled but Daniel, along with his client and stakeholders, then decided that the canvas wasn't necessary and changed to using all mesh.
Finally, he had to choose what sort of strap to use to allow his client to carry the frame around. A double strap would be more comfortable on longer walks but more of a nuisance to take on and off. His client and stakeholders agreed that a single sling would be more convenient and this was used for the final product.
He and his client tested his product in the bush and report it worked very well. Daniel felt that his product was a success and possibly had the potential to be marketed commercially. Daniel's development of his product also led to his receiving a New Zealand Scholarship Award in Technology.
